A mod for Portal
Portal: Prelude, as its name states it, is a prequel to the game Portal. Its story revolves around the pre-GlaDOS epoch, even before she was plugged in. At this time, test subjects were monitored by real Aperture Science employees whose work was tedious, lengthy and repetitive. This is why they decided to build a great artificial intelligence that could both replace them in these difficult tasks, but also take responsibility for many other tasks within the complex and compete with Black Mesa's superiority. All employees of the Aperture Science complex are now eagerly awaiting GlaDOS. Maybe even a little too eagerly, as the upcoming events will tell...
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honestly even if im giving it more rating because of bias on the mod, looking back, some things aged like milk
This review contains spoilers
Portal: Prelude is by far one of the most well-known and classic mods for the original Portal, for better or for worse. The 2008 mod has the setting of a Portal prequel in a GLaDOS-less Aperture Science facility and it sounds enticing enough, and I'd even say it's one of the most accomplished unofficial attempts at doing so at the time, but it falls flat as soon as you drop in and hear the first lines of dialogue from the scientists that talk to you during the entirety of the game, possibly the clearest example of the worst line delivery and dialogue with quippy and unfunny jokes and a very poor use of sarcasm. The use of text-to-speech for the scientist's dialogue just sets in the quality of the script in general.
Then there's the test chambers themselves. What starts out as a very simple series of puzzles turn into very artificially complicated ones that make use of unintended game mechanics and fooling around with the physics of your character to actually fling yourself around and actually land where you wanna land, it sucks.
The one redeemable part is most likely the final act where they actually install GLaDOS in and she takes over the facility, the scripted parts are cool but it feels a bit dull when you have to do so much back and forth between adquiring a new Portal gun and coming back for the final boss, and then the final boss itself gets rather annoying to fight since it's so janky. I appreciate the effort, though, but this mod isn't so deserving of all the early praise it got... nor an RTX remaster a decade later.
Then there's the test chambers themselves. What starts out as a very simple series of puzzles turn into very artificially complicated ones that make use of unintended game mechanics and fooling around with the physics of your character to actually fling yourself around and actually land where you wanna land, it sucks.
The one redeemable part is most likely the final act where they actually install GLaDOS in and she takes over the facility, the scripted parts are cool but it feels a bit dull when you have to do so much back and forth between adquiring a new Portal gun and coming back for the final boss, and then the final boss itself gets rather annoying to fight since it's so janky. I appreciate the effort, though, but this mod isn't so deserving of all the early praise it got... nor an RTX remaster a decade later.
I signed up for more Portal, and what I got was Portal with moon logic. Puzzles require mechanics that are considered more advanced and are designed for those who've mastered portal flinging. After around the halfway point and looking up a handful of puzzle solutions, my patience wore thin.
Even for the angle of trying to experience a take on a part of Portal's lore that's never explored otherwise, there isn't much. It's all just scientists who are psychotic and make tons of jokes that just don't land.
Maybe those who understand Portal's mechanics heavily will get a kick out of this, but I don't think I can stomach it anymore. Don't entirely understand how this mod is so iconic, but I suppose 2008 was a very different time.
Even for the angle of trying to experience a take on a part of Portal's lore that's never explored otherwise, there isn't much. It's all just scientists who are psychotic and make tons of jokes that just don't land.
Maybe those who understand Portal's mechanics heavily will get a kick out of this, but I don't think I can stomach it anymore. Don't entirely understand how this mod is so iconic, but I suppose 2008 was a very different time.
This game definitely isn't for everyone, and I will admit some of the levels are straight up bullshit when you encounter them for the first time. This mod is less about solving puzzles (in fact, a lot of the time, the solution is fairly obvious) and more about execution/trial and error. Your portalling skills will be tested, more specifically your reflexes and your capability to perform advanced flings.
Simply put, most of the writing is pretty awful and dated. Jokes are not witty unlike the original Portal and instead the player is guided through maps by scientists who make unfunny sexual comments and are obsessed with death. Some of the dialogue though is very funny for all the wrong reasons: Most notably because of the mod's use of voice synthesizers (which I won't hold against it). Peter is like the only good character and he has a few actually funny lines.
But at the same time, I have to respect the huge project this mod ended up being, and for one of the earliest portal mods out there, it is still easily one of the highest-quality ones. It has this level of charm that I don't think any other Portal 1 mod has ever really managed to match. In particular, the last level of the mod really stands out above the rest and on its own is actually pretty awesome.
I certainly do have nostalgia for this mod, and I'm definitely part of the audience it caters to considering I really enjoy difficult Portal maps, but I don't think this mod is all that terrible. It has very apparent flaws, but for a first playthrough it can be a fun time. I would say it's worth a try for anyone looking for a more difficult Portal experience.
Simply put, most of the writing is pretty awful and dated. Jokes are not witty unlike the original Portal and instead the player is guided through maps by scientists who make unfunny sexual comments and are obsessed with death. Some of the dialogue though is very funny for all the wrong reasons: Most notably because of the mod's use of voice synthesizers (which I won't hold against it). Peter is like the only good character and he has a few actually funny lines.
But at the same time, I have to respect the huge project this mod ended up being, and for one of the earliest portal mods out there, it is still easily one of the highest-quality ones. It has this level of charm that I don't think any other Portal 1 mod has ever really managed to match. In particular, the last level of the mod really stands out above the rest and on its own is actually pretty awesome.
I certainly do have nostalgia for this mod, and I'm definitely part of the audience it caters to considering I really enjoy difficult Portal maps, but I don't think this mod is all that terrible. It has very apparent flaws, but for a first playthrough it can be a fun time. I would say it's worth a try for anyone looking for a more difficult Portal experience.
Not really enjoyable, as a lot of the levels require you to use physics exploits that were never intended to be in the original game and so just don't really feel satisfying to pull-off. It reminds me of Kaizo Mario and is a good example of a game being too hard (and in many cases pretty unfair) for no real reason.
Also I know that this is from 2008 and I guess the joke is that scientists are all awkward misogynists, but their voice-overs get really weirdly sexual, and in retrospect it makes the mod feel quite cringe, almost like a 13 year old made it.
Also I know that this is from 2008 and I guess the joke is that scientists are all awkward misogynists, but their voice-overs get really weirdly sexual, and in retrospect it makes the mod feel quite cringe, almost like a 13 year old made it.
ENG: Undoubtedly the first BIG Portal mod. It shows us an Aperture Science before the activation of GlaDOS in which scientists with doubtful ethics and morality will put us to test.
Unfortunately what condemns this mod from the very beginning of the game is its unfair difficulty. Having to solve, mostly, puzzles that are difficult mostly because we have a time limit. Obviously the original Portal had puzzles of this type, but did not exaggerate so much.
It's also worth mentioning that all the dialogue in the game is recorded with TTS (Text-To-Speech) which is actually... not a bad thing. There will be those who don't like it and take it out of the immersion. But in view of the fact that it doesn't sound that bad (especially the British accent) I for one let them slide.
To summarize, the mod is bad due to the fact that most of the time it's about solving lousy designed puzzles. However, some puzzles that are truly innovative and the sadistic tone on the part of the scientists saves it from utter mediocrity.
ESP: Sin lugar a dudas el primer GRAN mod de Portal. Nos muestra un Aperture Science antes de la activación de GlaDOS en el cual científicos con dudosa ética y moralidad nos pondran a prueba.
Lamentablente lo que condena a este mod desde muy al comienzo del juego es su injusta dificultad. Teniendo que resolver, mayoritariamente, puzzles que son difíciles más que nada porque tenemos un tiempo límite. Obviamente el Portal original tenía puzzles de este tipo, pero no exageraba tanto.
También cabe mencionar que todo el diálogo del juego está grabado con TTS (Text-To-Speech) lo cual en realidad... no es malo. Habrá quien no le guste y lo saque de la inmersión. Pero en vista de que no suena tan mal (sobre todo el acento británico) por mi parte se las dejo pasar.
Para resumir, el mod es malo debido a que la mayor parte del tiempo se trata de resolver puzzles pésimamente diseñados. Sin embargo, algunos puzzles que son realmente innovadores y el tono sádico por parte de los científicos lo salva de la absoluta mediocridad.
Unfortunately what condemns this mod from the very beginning of the game is its unfair difficulty. Having to solve, mostly, puzzles that are difficult mostly because we have a time limit. Obviously the original Portal had puzzles of this type, but did not exaggerate so much.
It's also worth mentioning that all the dialogue in the game is recorded with TTS (Text-To-Speech) which is actually... not a bad thing. There will be those who don't like it and take it out of the immersion. But in view of the fact that it doesn't sound that bad (especially the British accent) I for one let them slide.
To summarize, the mod is bad due to the fact that most of the time it's about solving lousy designed puzzles. However, some puzzles that are truly innovative and the sadistic tone on the part of the scientists saves it from utter mediocrity.
ESP: Sin lugar a dudas el primer GRAN mod de Portal. Nos muestra un Aperture Science antes de la activación de GlaDOS en el cual científicos con dudosa ética y moralidad nos pondran a prueba.
Lamentablente lo que condena a este mod desde muy al comienzo del juego es su injusta dificultad. Teniendo que resolver, mayoritariamente, puzzles que son difíciles más que nada porque tenemos un tiempo límite. Obviamente el Portal original tenía puzzles de este tipo, pero no exageraba tanto.
También cabe mencionar que todo el diálogo del juego está grabado con TTS (Text-To-Speech) lo cual en realidad... no es malo. Habrá quien no le guste y lo saque de la inmersión. Pero en vista de que no suena tan mal (sobre todo el acento británico) por mi parte se las dejo pasar.
Para resumir, el mod es malo debido a que la mayor parte del tiempo se trata de resolver puzzles pésimamente diseñados. Sin embargo, algunos puzzles que son realmente innovadores y el tono sádico por parte de los científicos lo salva de la absoluta mediocridad.